Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

[eagrbeavr]

Do you mean sandwiching the heating pad between the wire? I have a dowel in mine, but its used to help keep the pad from sagging too much.

 

[eagrbeavr]

Or are you putting your heating pad over the top of the wire.

 

[circlehouse]

Do you mean sandwiching the heating pad between the wire? I have a dowel in mine, but its used to help keep the pad from sagging too much. 

I was planning on putting the pad underneath, but the sandwiching.... Hmmm... Thoughts on that? I'm brooding outside in freezing temps so I was thinking more contact underneath is better... Just don't want it to collapse if they are hanging out on top.

 

[Blooie]

I just want to say thanks to everyone who has been so helpful to a new soon to be chick mama. I really appreciate it. And I am sorry for the part I played in hijacking the thread! Back to MHP... I want to be as simple as possible with my frame, can I just double up he 1/2 inch hardware cloth I have instead of adding dowels? Will that be strong enough to support chicks sitting on top? Thanks!

No apologies needed at all....BYC exists to share information and learn, learn, learn....we just got a little too far off and I was afraid it might be confusing to new folks coming in, that's all! IF htey were looking for heating pad stuff and seeing page after page of everything but, they might not get their concerns addressed. I've done my share of hijacking!

Well said. Everyone has the right to have their own thoughts about things but that doesn't mean people must impose their thoughts on others.
I have to confess especially liked the part of your post saying you don't mind repeating the how to's of the setup

So, here is my question: my cave is 17 inches front to back, made out of a tomato cage. Is it too long considering the heating pad doesn't cover the whole thing? Thanks !

If you have the pad more toward the back and leave a space at the front without heat, like I did on page one of the thread, the towel or whatever you use coming down in front will form an awning and still help hold heat in. Don't go all the way to the ground with it...just an awning. The only thing I'd worry about then is them falling through the towel because the supporting wires are so far apart on a tomato cage, but I know lots of people have used them with great success. Or you can always cut the back off a bit until the pad is closer to fitting the way you want it to. I think @COChix used a tomato cage and liked it, so she might have more ideas than I do.

Thanks for the support. I'm not normally grouchy. But today is my one-month-no-smoking anniversary after 52 years of smoking, it's been a particularly bad one, and if those who precipitated this little rant had been peeking in the windows they couldn't have picked a worse day. And actually it's been that way for the last 3 - 4 days, so maybe I over-reacted a bit. I don't know.

 

[eagrbeavr]

Personally I'd stick with a dowel. You could double the wire on top if you're concerned about weight.. Kinda hard to say without dimensions.

I found the sagging isnt much of a big deal anyhow. I have one dowel in the middle and it appears one side droops a little more than the other, but it seems they like it that way. They could slip under it deep, like us slipping deep into a comforter.

I agree with you, I think having the pad underneath is the way to go, especially outside.

 

[Blooie]

Did you guys see @Beekissed posts and photos of her setup with the pad on the inside of the wire frame?

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/956958/mama-heating-pad-in-the-brooder-picture-heavy-update/450

And I raise my chicks outside using the pad there exactly the way I used it when I was raising them in the house.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/yes-you-certainly-can-brood-chicks-outdoors

 

[katbriar]

DE is fine to use in the coop. It just depends on how you put it down.
Here's how you do it. First clean yur coop down to the floor. Everything off the floor. Now take your feed grade DE ( not pool grade) and sprinkle it over the floor just until you can't see the pattern (whatever it is) in the floor. A thin film you can't see thru a bit deeper in the corners.  Not a heavy layer. Wear a simple face cover when you put down the DE.. 
 Now get your bag of Sweet PDV stall sweetener you got at the tack store or Tractor Supply. Sprinkle a layer of it oiver the DE in the same way, at the same depth being careful not to disturb the DE so the DE remains a solid film, smile.
   Now carefully lay down your 3-4 inches of dried hardwood shavings ( the white bale, not the yellow bale) you got at Tractor Supply. Viola! You are done.
  The DE lays on the bottom and scratches the exoskeletons of any bugs you don't want in the coop so they dehydrate and die. The Sweet PDZ cuts moisture and helps eliminate any ammonia and bad smells in the coop. The shavings make a nice bed for the birds and are deep enough to make thing  comfortable for them.    
   Clean the coop and do this again when the shavings start to get packed down. Maybe once every 2 months or so. If it is winter, just add more chips. Do not stir shavings  to "fluff" them using this method. The DE and Sweet PDZ do their work on the bottom of the coop. You can sprinkle Sweet PDZ on the top of the shavings to help freashen the coop if you want. Do not do this with the DE, it only stays on the very bottom of the coop.
 If you still want to sell the DE, I wish I was close enough to buy it, sigh.
 I do not use De in dusting boxes, there are other formulas which work better.  I don't dust the run with DE.
 Best,
 Karen

And then your chickens get in there and have the whole carefully arranged layers tossed like an Olive Garden salad in no time.

 

[lazy gardener]

All my lil emoticon buddies are here to congratulate you, Blooie on your one month anniversary. Here's wishing you many more!!! And success, one day at a time!

As far as your post regarding nay sayers goes, sometimes those things need to be said. It doesn't matter what the topic. Folks are entitled to their opinions. BUT, sometimes those opinions become inflammatory. It's not ok to go on a thread dealing with a topic you don't approve of, just to repeatedly voice disapproval. There are hundreds of ways to make chicken soup, and even vegetarian chicken soup for those folks who will never process one of their chickens! And there are hundreds of ways to raise chickens, hundreds of types of coops, lots of ways to feed your birds. I am super thankful that Blooie has started this thread to introduce folks to the method of raising chicks without having to resort to the dreaded inquisition style heat lamp!!! So, let's move on with happy well adjusted chicks who know the difference between day and night, and know what to do during the day, and what to do during the night!!!

 

[Blooie]

I

you, LG! Happy birthday!!!!

 

[ksguy]

Just sharing a couple pics of my setup.

Brooder within the run:

Access to the cave:

Wishing them luck with tonight's frosty temps.